Kosmos

Culture, travel, fashion and culinary delights: the Kosmos pages of Lufthansa Magazin bring you interesting and useful tidbits from around the world

A question of context

A question of context What’s this postmodern museum building doing in the middle of the desert? Artist Anton Repponen illustrates the effect of context by beaming some of New York’s architectural icons to deserted landscapes using Photoshop. The project is called “Misplaced.”

Culture clash

Just follow your nose? The sense of smell tends to be undervalued in the West but has a high status in many other cultures:

SMELL THE BABY

The Serer-Ndut people in Senegal believe in reincarnation and that a child’s scent reveals which ancestor has been reborn. The matter is settled if there’s a resemblance.

ACKNOWLEDGE THE NOSE

“How is your nose” is the common greeting used by the Ongee people. Smell is the prime sense for the Andaman islanders in Southeast Asia, and their calendar is dictated by the blossoming periods of certain flowers.

LISTEN TO THE FLOWERS

Smell? Hearing? For the Dogon in Mali these two senses overlap, with language having an odor and flowers a sound. They love the sound/scent of onions, which both sexes rub over their bodies.

Razor sharp

Songs like “Mr. Brightside” and “Human” catapulted The Killers to the higher echelons of independent rock. The band from Las Vegas is touring with its latest – and fifth – album. Catch The Killers on February 27 in Berlin and March 5 in Cologne.

Good Start

Been there, done that! Many airports are now offering a wider choice of wellness services.

DOWNWARD DOG

Long-haul flights can play havoc with your ­muscles. Yoga is a great way of limbering up again. Several airports have designated yoga rooms, including Frankfurt, San Francisco, Dallas and Chicago.

HOT STEAM

Fancy working up a sweat en route? Head to the airport saunas in the Finnish cities of Helsinki and Kuusamo, where you cool down afterwards on a terrace with a view of the apron.

BEAUTY ON THE GO

Depart and arrive looking ab fab: Be Relax beauty spas offer manicures, pedicures, hair styling and facial treatments, and are opening up at airports all over the world, including Singapore, Frankfurt and New York.